One thing George was very good at according to Paul was his ability to come up with memorable fills to songs which actually made some of their best songs better. Paul actually said in an interview that he thought George was one of the "all time greats". Pretty good compliment actually. He cited the acoustic fill in the song "And I love her" as an example of Georges uncanny ability to add unusual riffs and fills to songs.
hmmm.. that's just the melody though. It's a strange comment considering that. Unless he's not talking about the solo but the 4 note riff that starts the verses. Which is nice.
@@simongregory3114 Yes, the solo is a competently and very tastefully played transposed melody line played on a classical guitar. What Paul was talking about is the intro and end piece of the song. They didn't have a beginning and George came up with thisd simple melody that works with the two basic chords.
John and Paul showed up to the studio with full knowledge of what they wanted in their songs. George had to learn the songs and then improvise or produce what they wanted.
@@stevemorris6790 If you remember, the difference of just one grade in school could make a very big difference. One day I was making plastic models, alone in my room the next I cared nothing about anything other then GIRLS and was out the door after school meeting up with my buddies who wanted to chase same. 9 month's could make a very big difference then, guitar playing included.
The studio is a tough place to get used to when you're starting out. Then on top of it duplicating what's in george m and Paul's head... Nothing but props to George.
Paul McCartney did the solo on Georges "Taxman" after George struggled with the solo. Geoff Emerick said "George, Ringo and John went for lunch and we put Paul on the solo and Paul was excellent in fast and intense solos.
@@stevemorris6790 You are saying that 19 year old George Harrison should have been as good as one of the most talented musicians in history, because he was only nine months younger than him?
Many groups in the 60's learned about the session musicians known as "The Wrecking Crew" who didn't require multiple takes to "get it right" (well, Brian Wilson the ultimate perfectionist aside) .
@mikeb5372 Not today. The music is cookie cutter. No one plays instruments. Videos are more about producers and directors, and choreographers are making millions.
I never thought George was the best guitarist from a technical perspective, like a session player has to be. But many of his guitar parts were incredibly creative, melodic and memorable. The Beatles songs wouldn't have been the same without them.
In Paul's auto-biography he says that the guitars, the way they are arranged, was totally George's IDEA. He took the a copy of the song home and worked on it by himself. Meaning he is trying to make this stuff up. He is not copying something or someone. He is CREATING!!! Because of Taxman people started this stuff. However, as Paul said, try playing And I Love Her without the riff that George came up with. Paul said without that riff it's a boring song. With it, it becomes a masterpiece. As Paul says in an interview "imagine that song without it"
You gotta love Sir Paul : So humble, down to earth and appreciative of other's talent. John Lennon said about his friend that he was musically "selfless" : Serving the other members of the band in his parts and able to write about other people's lives, about things he never really felt himself.
We who have overdubbed and recorded will sympathize and understand that all guitar tracks are not meant to be. Some just don't work. Thanks for the info.
Most of George's solos, From Till There Was You to Something, were a whole lot closer to "brilliant" than to "competent". There's always been this faction that thinks Paul was better guitar player than George and a better drummer than Ringo - keep dreamin'.
Paul was a more distinctive and creative guitarist both as a soloist (Drive My Car, Taxman) and arranger (Mother Nature’s Son, Blackbird). But George played some great slide stuff (How Do You Sleep, Gimmie Some Truth) after the breakup.
Hey maybe Paul *was* "better" technically, but so what? But here's the thing about McCartney.. he knew what he had in front of him. He knew the Beatles was not "Paul McCartney Solo" and he acted accordingly. He knew what collaboration was all about.
@@joebeamish George played very melodic solos, which he worked out in advance and played perfectly in the studio. He wasn't great at improvisation on demand, but he was technically a better all-around player than Paul, well versed in jazz chord voicings and music theory. Paul was more intuitive but not as educated musically. Hey, just listen to "Old Brown Shoe" where George played a stinging lead solo AND an awesome bass part in Paul's absence I believe he was showing off his bass prowess for Paul, in return for Paul's criticism of his lead playing. George was also very critical of Paul's bass part on "Something" in the studio, insisting that he do it the way George wanted it done. And George's solo on Something is an all-time classic.
I thought for sure Taxman would get mentioned....Paul playing lead. Not to diminish George's contribution to the band, it wasn't until I joined a Beatles tribute band with Tim Piper (as George) that I really appreciated George's work, man, that guy was a master at caged chords!!!!
Yep; George did neither of those. They were played by McCartney. Legend has it that George was struggling to get the solo on Taxman right. Paul wanted to finish the song and move on, so in a flash of ‘impatience’/‘temper’, he picked up his own guitar, and overdubbed it. The irony being of course that Taxman was written by Harrison. Helter Skelter; George wasn’t in the studio. Paul was always going to do it and did so. George isn’t on the track at all. A lot of the latter went on in the ‘end days’. Ringo would often arrive in the studio to find that Paul had already locked the drums down by himself. Happened to George a lot too. At the end, it was mostly the Lennon/McCartney show with two part-time sidemen. And right at the end, ‘twas really just Paul, dotting the Is and crossing the Ts.
on "taxman", you can hear the exasperation in paul's playing, which luckily works for the song. one can only imagine what GH went through on this occasion- I think he was already getting used to the shitty end of the stick, & was remarkably stoical about it. it's believed that he was avenged on "she said", by filling in on bass for an absent mccartney. a lesser musician might've walked over the publishing, & the way his own songs weren't deemed good enough for the releases, but instead he addressed it directly ("northern song") & stuck at it, turning out some beautiful songs of his own despite things like (& you can watch this in both 'let it be' & peter jackson's remix, "get back") the arrangement process of 'GB', wherein there is never any discussion but that lennon is to play the solos... two of the same one, in fact, & with which he clearly struggles. macca even makes space for a third solo so that billy preston can be highlighted.... GH just takes it on the chin, despite the miserable time he's been given by macca & lennon over the previous days. lennon: "if he doesn't come back, we'll get clapton in" & so on; bunch of deep reading here & in the 'ten days at twickenham' tapes, that didn't make it into either version of the flick: amoralto.tumblr.com/post/68911122415/january-10th-1969-twickenham-film-studios
@@duncan-rmi Love To You and Within You/Without You are the best Beatles songs. (Honorable mention to Tomorrow Never Knows, Norwegian Wood and Baby You're a Rich Man, all made better because of George)
As a Fan of the Beatles since I was 12, I remember learning the guitar and that practice and patience come in hand when you reap the Rewards of your Hard Earned Work as George and myself did in the Years to come……I am 72 now and owe it to my Uncle and Father who taught me through love that nothing is impossible if you believe you will achieve…Greg😊
Same here. Those guys brought me to start and learn playing guitar, a Framus like the one that John possessed and only was found recently. Played until my fingers bled but couldn't stop, anyway. Glorious times to remember 👍💯🤩
Very interesting, but small reproach when it contrasts with all Harrison accomplished. At 22 he was faced with inventing and executing all the lead guitar for the greatest band of all time, and he rose to the occasion. I do not envy what George had to go through in that booth with Lennon and McCartney and George Martin glaring while you came up with the goods on a track. The stress also probably caused his chain smoking. Without George no Beatles.
Any musician...even session players, can have "off days." If you've ever heard the pianist's joke about playing in seven flats and getting kicked out of all of them, it may be easier to understand how musicians can encounter a "clam-dig." I had a reputation as a good session player in the '80s because of my ear. I couldn't read charts but I could usually nail a piano or bass part after hearing it once. My fingers got me into some trouble once on pieces written in C#. So they took me off the Steinway Model D and put me on a Korg SG that had a transpose feature. Sort of a Capo for piano. The customer didn't like the sound of the Korg so I was put back on the Steinway. but by then I was intimidated and couldn't play the part to save my soul. My older brother-a session drummer-who was in studio, came over, got on the Steinway, and nailed the part on his first take. My fingering got me into trouble, but my head is what ultimately defeated me. There's no shame in having off days. I can also see how John and Paul's feedback could make matters worse.
Yeah Paul was a hard taskmaster, and John could be downright surly when he was in a "mood." In the end it turned out good for George, since he had a great solo career. 😀
@@the_guitar_trooper I was wondering if you have done an examination of or 5 things I didn't know about the song "I'll Get You In The End". It was one of the songs I really liked when I was young. Thanks.
What Mr. Harrison may of had issues with, with some of these songs, he made up for with his intro riff to “And I Love Her”, making a great song into masterpiece.
Harrison later in life admitted that as a guitar player he never was as good as he could have been because he always been "lazy" about practicing. He said the same about Ringo as a drummer. Harrison candidly confessed all his life since learning to play as a child, even later in life, he'd go intermittent weeks without picking up a guitar. Quite a contrast to his close friend and peer Eric Clapton who was known to have spent 8 hours(in his youth)a day practicing and the legendary Jimi Hendrix who spent over 12 hours day practicing.
@@jean-louislanquetin535 Oui, tout à fait. Je suis de Liverpool, et j’ai vu les Beatles au Cavern pendant les années 60’s. George avait 17 ans. Pas trop bon à la guitare, mais après son confiance a grandi, ses chansons comme “Something” et “ Here comes the Sun” sont pareils des chansons de Lennon et McCartney. J’éspère que mon français est ok. Bon courage.
George was an amazing lead player…..he’s solos were so melodic and well thought out and suited the song perfectly. I’ll forgive him any songs he couldn’t add a great solo to. We’ve all been there if we are honest.
Sometimes a musician simply cannot "hear" what someone else is trying to explain...there've been times that I would ask our bass player, who kept messing up a part on a song, to hand me his bass and then I, along with the drummer, would play the part several times in a row and then it would "click".
@@avanm420 I totally agree with you. I despair of social media sometimes. Probably showing my age as someone who grew up without it. The Beatles were my biggest influence and made me want to play guitar, be in a band, and write and record songs. If I play a solo, George is always a big influence on me in that he was melodic and his solos always served the song. But yes, definitely click bait! I love that The Beatles left bits in recordings that people would edit out now....thank heavens there was no auto tune then either.
@@avanm420 Agree.... George was a great guitarist. Eric Clapton thought so.. I grew up bouncing tracks using sound on sound on a reel to reel recorder and later 4 tracks. Unless you have worked with this set-up you will never appreciate the discipline needed to get tracks done quickly and playing live with other musicians. We are spoilt these days. I'd love to take my MacBook air running Logic Audio to Abbey Road in 1963 and see how different the Beatles first album would have sounded. Some of the new mixes coming out using demixing and remixing are exciting as on Revolver and the Red and Blue albums.
George was an integral part of the overall sound of the group. Lot's of his work was in the form of picking chords and giving filling out the sound and putting little perfect riffs where something was needed. As you know Paul started out as a guitarist along with John and George and switched to bass. I think he always resented that and was very critical of George. He also played lead on Taxman. Paul had a weird out of time-ness on guitar that was really a big part of the B's sound. George would add a little sparkle to the sound that was part of the sound by hitting an unexpected note in a chord. He was not a riff guitarist in the beginning but he really could pull of all the 50s riffs.
McCartney always said that their early songs had to be shown to George and Ringo in the studio and they had about an hour and a half to record the track.. George was a brilliant guitarist..
I know you're a Beatle fan but these things need to be remembered: George was the youngest and he and Ringo early on had to learn John and Paul's songs on the spot with no rehearsal before the session. Furthermore, Harrison came up with, on the spot, the 4-note riff that begins "And I Love Her." (Imagine the song, beautiful as it is, without it.) He also was the one who had the idea to switch part of the bridge of "We Can Work it Out" from 4/4 to 3/4, and worked out the backwards guitar bit on "I'm Only Sleeping." Harrison also played bass very well on "She Said, She Said" because Paul walked out on the session after an argument. Overall, these issues notwithstanding, Harrison's guitar work was far better than competent, and for every rough patch there are many corresponding bright spots. Listen to his early solo on the cover of "Till There Was You." Then, there is the later work, the solo in one take on "Something" (which he had to get right because he played it with the orchestra as there were no more tracks available) and the way he kicks ass on the 1970 solo in "Let It Be" and his bits on the three-part solo near the end of the "Abbey Road" medley. Not to mention the fact that from 1965 on his songs were as good as John's and Paul's, which is not to slag them but to give George some proper credit. I tire of this slighting George stuff. There is little discussion of how he superbly assimilated what he learned of Indian music into his guitar playing creating a style completely his own but nonetheless highly influential. Anyone critical, the late Geoff Emerick included, is invited to try to come up with songs like "While My Guitar..." "Here Comes the Sun" or "I, Me, Mine" and see how they do. Then there's "All Things Must Pass" which stands proudly with any Beatles solo album and well above most of them. Fine to do a reality check on George. Yeah he had some difficulties now and again and Paul had to step in. This above is the other part of the reality check.
George did have some trouble occasionally but who doesn't? He had far more good moments than bad. Yes there are always people in comments who enjoy giving George hell, but the same thing happens to Paul and John. Very few criticize Ringo, except the rabid Pete Best fans. I feel pretty sure the vast majority of the haters have never picked up an instrument, much less played complicated parts. Opinions are like a-holes, everyone has one. George is and will always be my favorite Beatle regardless. RIP dear George- you will always be missed and remembered by your true fans! 💔🎸🥰
@@mojooftheg5961 He never wanted to learn, and formal musical training with all its "rules" would have been an obstacle for them. They had the sound in their ears and they knew how to get it onto tape. Seems to have worked out very well.
I was expecting to hear how Paul took the lead on Taxman after George struggled, and how he brought in Eric Clapton for While My Guitar Gently Weeps, but this was all new information to me. Thanks!
Lennon also did a lot of soloing I understand as well as Paul. If you look at films of the '64 and '65 performances on all sorts of shows (Ed Sullivan, BBC, Ready, Steady, Go - that stuff), come time for a solo, the camera always seems to go to faces - leaving you to wonder who is really soloing - particularly during the more elevated stuff (comparatively speaking). I was watching the early Stones, and the camera went straight to Keith on his solo, and you could see all of his hand-work. For that matter, the Stones were dressing as individuals at least as early as Feb. 65, and Jagger and Richards were already animated on stage. The Beatles remained with their matching suits right through their last live gig (I don't count the rooftop concert - don't get me started) in '66, and still had no stage moves to speak of.
To give George a break, no one ever accused the Beatles - collectively or individually - of being 'session men'. Has anyone seen the Peter Jackson movie?
My take on the Peter Jackson film was that the band as a whole were pretty sloppy when they would first get back together and after a couple of days they got very tight.
They became very accomplished session musicians after they stopped touring. “Something”, “Come Together”, side two of “Abbey Road” demonstrate how good they were. Sublime.
Musically, John was an excellent rhythm guitar player who could also play some mean lead licks and performed some interesting work on mouth organ, Paul was superlative on bass, (an instrument he didn't even want to play), could also play lead and was a competent keyboard player, Ringo was a very talented drummer and perfect for this group. George created some great licks especially when playing his Gretsch Country Gentlemen and he wrote four great songs ("If I Needed Someone", "Taxman", "Here Comes The Sun", "Something") as a Beatle although there are just too many guitar players that are much better than he was for him to ever be considered great. He performed his responsibility to his bandmates and came up with some great guitar breaks but as this vid shows, only most of the time.
@@MarkRoberts-bj2me Rubbish. Nobody said George was "great". But he was the best guitarist in the Beatles. George had guitar chops early on with his Chuck Berry riffs and his arrangement of Till There Was You and his guitar work on it. Paul was a wanna-be lead guitarist who was forced to play bass because nobody else would do it after Stu Sutcliff left the band. George was stifled in his playing by Paul's meddling and micro-managing right from the start. It got so bad that George lost interest in guitar for a few years and picked up the sitar instead. He became a fantastic slide player in his solo years.
George was not a strong lead player in the Early and Mid-60's, but by the time they did the roof top performance in 1969 George played some good solos on dig a pony and one after 909.
.... which we never really get to SEE! When the solo in "909" is playing out, the camera will focus on ANYTHING but George and his hands! I used to think it was camera-incompetence, now I tend to think it´s flawed musicianship, which called for some outside overdub!
I've heard comments years ago that if George played it, anyone can. Well, I am someone and I can't always play any number of his work. He undeniably was a guitar and songwriter genius, especially after the Beatles.
That's funny! "If George can play it, anyone can". Thanks also for the reality check, from "someone". We also have to remember that guitarists these days have the advantages of: tabs (previously, there was on classical notation), tabs and leadsheets for any song you want online, teachers who can reproduce the original off-the-record, youtube, etc. George and the other Beatles had none of these. They learned their instruments with just 45RPM singles and their ears. I was a bit the same, starting guitar in the 1970s. I got nowhere! Just couldn't do it! If you've tried teaching yourself from records, and see the clips of Paul Meeting John and playing "Twenty Flight Rock", and then George meeting him and playing "Raunchy" you understand why these were so impressive at the time.
George was always my favorite Beatle. I once heard him say he would be a really good guitar player if only he practiced. I still think he’s pretty darn good.
He simply underwent evolution, progress, while already being in the band. His talent preceded his craft that duly came a little later. Sorry, just not everybody is Michael Schenker, so skillful at 17 years old. Nonetheless, over time George acquired quality and his own style. By the days of _All Things Must Pass_ he was really brilliant - perhaps not with any genre, but surely within his groove.
Being born in July of 1996, I have nothing to say about these guys: they were extremely successful, but so were Stones, Byrds( America's answer,) Beach Boys. You are absolutely amazing with the particular dates( which I thoroughly enjoy!) ITS always a snapshot in time for me. You are the best! You don't need to to apologize for anything! You are extremely knowledgeable as well! As a lead vocalist in my third band, I am learning just how difficult trying to break into the music business really is! Joey in Cleveland
I was born in 1963 and to be honest, never listened to the Beatles unless something was on the radio. Music hit me in '73 and of course the scene had completely changed from the start of the Beatles and I was very much a child of my generation. But now, in my sixties, I find myself going back to the 60s and digging into discographies of many bands, of course The Beatles being one of them. It's very interesting to see the progression of pop or rock music through that generation. This was a very interesting video and I appreciate the insight into the most pivotal band of all time.
George was the lead guitar player for the best band in the world, but he wasn't the greatest guitar solo player in the world. Good! Whiz-bang guitar solos are a dime a dozen and are way-over-emphasized in rock music in my opinion. Dazzling, million-note solos would have ruined Beatles music. What George did instead was something much more subtle and much, much, better and more important. His guitar work all throughout their recording career was incredibly original and inventive and contributed in a huge way to creating Beatles magic, which no one else ever came close to. He was irreplaceable in the band. Without him as a member, we, in the States anyway, would never had heard of the Beatles. Plus his looks, his charm and charisma, his wit--irreplaceable. As far as I'm concerned, it amounts to this: There was one guitarist in the band, JohnPaulGeorge. Their combined playing resulting in the best guitar-based music we've ever heard. It doesn't make any difference who played what.
Sometimes he would just play the melody. When the melodic material is strong sometimes that's the best thing to do. George really improved when he also started playing the sitar. I think the wide action helped his guitar playing as well.
George Harrison as The Beatles lead player did a pretty good job of thait. My ears told me so. The George Harrison single, While My Guitar Weeps For Me, the solo was recorded by Eric Clapton. During their heyday during the early 1960s - 70s, any technical inadequacies swept right over the heads of the vast numbers of fans who enjoyed the music The Beatles made with producer, George Martin. Of course there were fans of earlier pop music singers and musicians who blew the charts apart riding high until the Mersey Bands including the Beatles, displayed a raw energy from their seaport heritage introducing Rock 'a' Billy and Rock n Roll from The New World, to the Old and to a new generation of youngsters seeking music they could identify with. A walk on the wild side. Before them was Cliff Richard and his seminal British Rock n Roll single, Move It. Recorded using mostly studio session players. Where Cliff was an imitation Elvis, The Beatles were rough cut in the bars and strip joints on the Reeperbahn of Hamburg, a large German seaport. Pop vs Rock. Just different, not better. Cliff Richard, became a lounge crooner as the Beatles and the new bands growing popular during that time, liked the American blues influenced music and the overtly sexual moves of the bands singer, Mick Jaeger of the Rolling Stones. Where everybody came to love Cliff and The Shadows, the Moms of young teenage girls did not think the same about The Stones as their daughters did.
Makes me feel better about the times my guitar timing was off when I was a young musician. George and the others were my inspiration to get into music. It doesn’t diminish my admiration to know they were also human.
HA!, HA!....Got to hand it to you, my friend. You're very brave to have waded into some dangerous waters on this one, mate. But, lets be realistic. George himself would say he wasn't the lead player that people thought he was. He kept it honest and was very upfront about it.....always. Didn't try to hide or woodshed anything. IMO it's what kept him the most authentic of the Beatles. He still was an excellent rhythm player, singer and songwriter. His legacy will do fine. 🥃👍🍸
Imagine trying to record that many songs in one day. Brand new songs at that. These moments are common. No shame on George. Great video. And ,as I read in one of the comments. Always good to tune you in.
A careful listen to a lot of the Beatles' early work, especially the guitar solo in "I saw Her Standing There" shows George quite ill at ease -- what the hippies a few years later would call "uptight". Paul was clearly a more technically accomplished player, although better at what today is called shredding than at creating charismatically melodious lines. Back in the day, "shredding" was king and George was intimidated. When he finally did find his guitar voice and Paul wasn't around, George created exquisitely beautiful rock and roll lead guitar.
@@goplad1 Yes, Paul would tell George what to play, which annoyed him to all end. Paul not technically better than George. George was the best lead guitarist.
@@whodidit99yeah George was the best technical guitarist of the group. Paul could come up with some interesting stuff though like the Taxman solo--which was just wild.
Don't agree. In my opinion, you can't look at 1964 music through the lens of 2024, comparing them to later musicians, many of which may never have picked up a guitar, let alone be successful in music if not for the Beatles. There is nothing wrong with that solo imho, certainly for it's time and early place in the Beatles music. In the U.S. emerging bands often were not allowed to play their own instruments in the studio, studio time being pricey, i.e. Wrecking Crew. The Beatles played their own instruments, with rare exceptions for strings and horns, George Martin on piano, or special guests like Preston or Clapton. No band carried the clout to tie up a studio with engineers for nearly a year, as with Sgt. Pepper and the Beatles.
For many years, I was impressed by the hammer-ons in the "Hard Day's Night" solo. They are difficult to play at full speed. For me, pull-offs are easier. It was comforting to find out that George had problems with them too, and that he had to work hard on getting solos right to play live. It's one thing to come up with a good solo in the studio and have the opportunity to do lots of takes to pick out a good one. It's another thing to nail them consistently live. Just shows that these guys were really hard-working professionals.
Speaking of Eric, his dear friend John Mayall just died. He posted a tribute on Instagram. Eric doesn't look good, and it sounds like he is struggling to breathe. I didn't realize he was so ill!
@@the_guitar_trooper Well, yes. The drugs were, I'm sure, a major way to go to Jesus sooner than you planned. But look at Keith Richards--he's like the energizer bunny! I think it's all in the genes. A person can be dying at 58, or keep going to 100! You never know.
Mayall was very important to Eric and was instrumental in Eric's growth in the blues and understanding of music in general. Eric said in his tribute that John was not only a mentor, but he was as much a "father like" figure in his life as he was a close friend. For a man who never met his birth father and who had limited male influence in his early life from his grandfather, such a man as John Mayall greatly impacted Eric's life. Filled with emotion, it must have been very hard for Eric to make the short and heartfelt tribute so soon after John's passing. He's struggling with his emotions, not his ability to breathe. His singing at concerts this year in 2024 has been crisp, strong and on point, unlike 82 year old Paul McCartney, who, bless his heart, has lost a great deal of range and timber in his singing. Paul has rocked the world for 60 years but his sound quality has diminished. Eric, on the other hand, is still within a pleasing tone of octave and timber, is not struggling either singing or playing the guitar. Chalk it up to him being an old guy who lost one of the anchors that sustained him for many years. He had a similar reaction when giving a tribute to his very close friend, B.B. King, several years ago. Eric is only a few years older than me, and I find myself getting choked up more as close and dear friends pass away. Realize that our reliance on our "public face" to disguise our emotions wanes as the years on the calendar grow larger.
Live George nailed the solo to Hard Day's Night perfectly at normal speed Check the 64 show in France, the solo is amazing. Sometimes things don't work, and someone else might have a better way to play a part. That was one of their strengths.
The video clip from Palais De Sports has overdubbed audio for the solo. You can even hear the piano. The Hollywood Bowl ‘64, on the other hand, sounds to me like a true live performance by George.
In Hunter Davies' first edition of their biography that only documented them through 1967, George's mother would describe how hard George worked on the guitar early on. She said he'd play till his fingers bled. She described his concentration as intense.
Excellent detective work! Thought for sure that you would have included "Taxman." Also in George Martin's book about the making of Sgt. Pepper, Martin points out that after Harrison finished the guitar fills for the intro song, Martin was pleased with the work. The next day Paul redid everything to Harrisons dismay. I could only imagine how pissed he was.
I think the "right look" may have also been very important in the early Beatles - George certainly had the right look ... Lennon & McCartney were well aware of Mick Greens guitar prowess - he was in the skiffle trio, who were runners up to Quarrymen in a 1950s battle of the bands competition in Tottenham, north London - Mick was however a large burly guy who did not fit the Beatle's carefully cultivated "stage image" ...IMVHO.
Harrison once said in an interview that McCartney ruined him as a guitar player. George had an inferiority complex when it came to his guitar playing in the studio mainly because McCartney would get impatient with him and steal his thunder by either playing over his guitar part or taking the lead guitar work away from George. It's no wonder George didn't much care for Paul.
I've done my share of studio work. In fairness to George, i would imagine John & Paul had worked these songs ahead of the recording sessions so they both knew what they wanted to hear. George was probably hearing them or playing them for the first time and, unlike us, he didn't have the benefit of hearing the completed song to understand what was wanted. Hope that makes sense.
George Harrison's riffs were an important feature of Beatles' songs but no wonder I had trouble emulating the Hard Days Night solo. Thank you for showing it was done by tape speed up. I had to use hybrid picking.
I appreciate the information. George Martin explained that the Hard Days night solo had to be learned in one day and George couldn’t learn it that fast. Quite understandable. However George’s solo on Till There Was You shows a very competent guitarist at just 18 years old. In this era of seeing how studio musicians were used by many American bands, the few examples only point out how good the Beatles were.
Years ago I commented on some guitar forum that Harrison, during much of his tenure with the Beatles, was not a good guitar player and had to have help with his solos. I was roasted by his rabid fans. Thank you for this vindication.
George Martin's half speed technique to get Harrison to play the solo the best he can is just amazing! No wonder he's one of the great Legends of music production in history. And you, you deserve many thanks for bringing this to our attention. Seriously, I watched 30 Beatles videos a week. Few have as much research as yours.
I was recording my piano track and the first time I did it I was 99.999999 there ! The very last note , I hit the wrong key on a , four plus minute , piano banging song ( I did not have the ability to jump into tracks at that time ) . I had to redo the song with every mistake ( good old days ) It took me an hour to get it right ! I had to stop at the 9th try , take a deep breath , collect myself , and then spend the rest of the hour it took me , to get it right ! I recorded bass with a blues band and of the eleven songs we did , I made no mistakes and did not have to redo any of my work ( ( re track ) . I sat around then and watched everyone else struggling ? Luck or talent ? %$#@ing Luck Baby ! People don't know how hard it is to do it right , no matter how long it takes !
Fascinating, it's great to see how much goes into getting a song just perfect. Albeit, many listeners that aren't musicians or have an ear for it probably wouldn't even notice many of the errors. Thanks for bringing these things to light.
The Beatles were a pop group not virtuoso musicians, which is why we have session musicians, people who can deliver quickly and efficiently and get the job done.
What does that mean? They blew out those early albums. Those songs they have been playing in clubs in Liverpool and Germany for 8 hours a night. They wrote the songs and created what you hear, and the Wrecking Crew would not have done them any better in my opinion and I love and respect the wrecking crew. How those songs were played were how the Beatles wrote them to be played. Part of the genius of not being musicians that read music and knew all the rules was the fact that the Beatles didn't have to follow the rules and they didn't.
Paul also took the solo on “Taxman”, as well as Clapton on “While my Guitar Gently Weeps”, Lennon played the solo on “Honey Pie” and “Get Back”. It wasn’t a competition where Harrison’s contributions were in question, rather it was who could come up with the best part for the song. George didn’t feel slighted by McCartney’s contributions, rather Paul had the right solo at the time.
Us Beatles fans need to stick together! How about video or series on John, Paul and George’s guitars/bases during the Beatles years. You seem to have all the knowledge needed. 👍
Hi Pete! You know I always thought that was a great idea too, but I ran a couple of tests on shorts and they were only moderate performers. I don’t know.
People forget just how young they were on those early albums and were contracted to produce 2 albums a year along with separate singles, record the albums in a couple of days while constantly touring doing two or three shows a day. There must have been a lot of pressure.
He was only 14 when he auditioned for 17 year old John - & he passed muster on the strength of his ability to hold & arpeggiate a single chord - as per: ruclips.net/video/PguZn6MpF-Y/видео.html
All of George's solos could be hummed almost immediately after first hearing it. Listen to George's guitar work in CRY FOR A SHADOW from 1963. Simply amazing!
George played with feel and as such wasn't bound to rote playing, therefore as a creative guitar player every once in a while he'd change up what he was doing, most of the time it worked, and as you pointed out, sometimes it just wouldn't due to mood, atmosphere, circumstances and timing, being a Beatle was tough on all of them. Ringo, Paul, John and George all had development mistakes, but like perfectionists they worked them out and I'd say they did a great job of it. The proof was in the final cut recordings as it is in all cases. I'll never be down on any one of them, ever.
SO INTERESTING! I DON'T REMEMBER GEOFF MENTIONS THAT IN "HERE, THERE AND EVERYWHERE". I KNEW ABOUT THE PIANO SOLO HALF SPEED RECORDING IN IN MY LIFE, BUT IT NEVER CROSSED MY MIND THEY WERE USING THAT TECHNIC FOR GUITARS AS WELL!
@@the_guitar_trooper THANKS FOR SHARING YOUR VAST KNOWLEDGE:) HAVE YOU EVER BEEN TO ANY OF THEIR SESSIONS? I GOT LUCKY TO HAVE WORKED WITH ALAN PARSONS, BUT WE NEVER SPOKED ABOUT THE SPEEDING UP TECHNIC.
Interesting piece, and these problems shed light on the "Let It Be" kerfuffle between Paul and George. Harrison, as a guitarist, was known more for his sliding notes (e.g., "Something in the Way She Moves") and forays into Indian music than for his virtuosity. But that set of work along with his songwriting certainly made him an indispensible member of the group; another example of the group's output being greater than that of the sum of the parts.
He was a little more than "competent". George famously designed his solos to fit and support the song - not to show what a great guitarist he was. His solos for "Til There Was You". "And I Love Her". "Let It Be" (Naked version, not the Spector disaster), and "Something" are among the greatest in all rock. Plus, listen to the BBC sessions when he shows what a great rock n' roll guitarist he could be.
My comment is just that I was surprised that you didn't mention that it was Paul, not George, who ended up playing the guitar solo on George's song, Tax Man, on the Revolver album. Very interesting watch...thanks for this one, and hope you and yours are doing great!
Honestly, for historical records & the archivists this is part of their story and presented appropriately. But, for me, what we didn’t know we didn’t need to know, it was and is enough to love the Beatles and their music. Happy we had ‘em at all!
George was the first to admit he didn't practice. But his amazing artful contributions (far too many to mention) outweighed his off days, for sure. Another good GT focus! 👍
I only know of George admitting he "didn't practice" in the context of after the Beatles became famous, and him admitting that he could have been a better guitar player "if I practiced". I suspect he practiced obsessively when he started out and before he met the Beatles, and probably in their early years. The only "proof" I can give is his famous playing of "Raunchy" for John, when he was introduced to him by Paul. To be able to do that as a teenager in the 1950s, without the benefit of tabs (as we have today) and with little instruction, is a sign of much practice! Moreover, to be able to play Chuck Berry and the other standards as a member of the band during the early years is also a sign of practice. (They aren't easy!)
ps. I' ve just seen a video where we learned that when George first picked up a guitar as a teenager he "practiced till his fingers bled". When, at age 14, he was invited to join the Quarrymen, he was a better guitar player than Paul. As for how much he practiced after, say, 1965, we have that one quip from him that he would have been a better player if he'd practiced, but I've also heard his wife, Patti Boyd, say of being married to both George and Eric Clapton, that both played guitar "all the time". Maybe George didn't count hours-per-day noodling as "practice".
@@stephenhosking7384 regarding the bleeding fingers: this can only happen if you do not practice for quite a while at all and then do something like playing 10 hours straight. If you practice regularly it cannot happen.
With studio work - it had to be as perfect as the “chief recording engineer “ fells it should be- and the tape doesn’t lie- so frustrating sometimes- could be a matter of musical timing- or how much time you gonna spend on a piece- If given time George probably could have nailed it but it’s harder under pressure- George was an Amazing talent!!
The Pressure Paul and John Put him under would make anyone loose his focus. He was n great part of group so dont badmouth him now. His first solo album after their break up was the best of the four members.
As a guitarist from the 60's and still playing I dont find anything wrong with any of Georges so called mistakes. Sixties record producers would often not like this and that but could never pin it down. George can up with many great guitar licks which by todays standards are just out of this world.
George called in Gary Moore to complete a guitar part The Traveling Wilburys were struggling with.....George said "It took Gary 5 minutes" to complete it. 🎸
George was a bit of a highly valuable diamond in the rough. He just needed some extra time to grow. His sitar work in Beatles was great. Obviously he had a good ear and was open and receptive to new sounds. And his slide guitar playing that he developed later on is wonderful. Very melodic! Props to George and the Beatles! Still the best rock/pop group.
That is the song that inspired me to become a guitarist. Not anything Paul or John did. George was by far the best guitarist in the Beatles. Paul could never play those beautiful jazz chords. Paul's constant belittling of George's lead playing caused him to lose his desire for the guitar for a few years, so he picked up the sitar and became fluent on it. Then as the Beatles were coming to an end, he got back into guitar and slide guitar ("My Sweet Lord"). His "Something" solo is a classic and he really rips it up on "Old Brown Shoe". He also played eye-opening bass on "Old Brown Shoe". George was not an egotist like Paul, but he was the backbone of the Beatles.
You nut! You had me laughing in the first few minutes. Great detail and I liked your commentary. When you write and perform arguably three or four of the worlds best songs I think you can stand a little mud that gets kicked on you in the process, But you point out how even the legendary Beatles had obstacles they had to overcome, which they did well. George "While My Guitar Gently Weeps" Harrison's place in music history is safe.
The first Beatle recording I heard in the sixties and it was "I Want To Hold Your Hand". Being in a local band I love the simple sound of the Beatles in their early albums. But, it was that song with Harrison's guitar riffs the caught my attention and made me a Beatle's fan.
Okay, a thumb's up and a comment; I was expecting a word about Taxman but hey, you did not mention 1966 but only three earlier tracks from 1963 to 1965. Good "detective" work from you and got your point made clear and not mean at all. Sweet to play Something in the background for the conclusion. Thank you little old man. ;-)
According to Geoff Emerick, George spent hours working out a solo for "I'll Follow The Sun" but Paul didn't like it. Paul , in an effort to show something more along the lines of what he was looking for, picked up the guitar and simply played the melody sliding from one note to the next. Everyone approved and that's what went on the record. (And I imagine George wasn't happy about it).
That's not what Emerick wrote at all! According to him, on the first few takes John played the solo but George Harrison complained he'd been left out. So George took over but no-one was that happy with his solo, so says Emerick. Nevertheless, George Martin decided they had to move on and George's solo stayed on the record. Nothing whatsoever about Paul playing it! Emerick claims he can hear the hesitancy in George's playing on the released record. Sounds fine to me, and definitely sounds like Emerick had a score to settle with George. He even admitted he didn't like him. A lot of this anti-George stuff has come from that book and been refuted by the likes of engineer Ken Scott. Later in the book Emerick does seem to come around to George and gives him some grudging respect.
Let's face it, everyone has their off days. George was a brilliant guitarist and the only one of the Beatles that had musical schooling before becoming a Beatle. Yet another informative & interesting video from out favorite "Old Guy"! 👍👍📀📀
Maybe the toughest ''job'' with the Beatles : coming up with a great 15-second solo to complement a great song. Amazing, how he pulled it off and how so many of these songs owe a major part of their ''greatness'' to George's melodic creativity. In my book, he's #1 at pulling it off. I catch myself humming so many of his solos. Hats off to you George. The more I listen, the more I appreciate.
that's the gist of the matter - - only enough room for two geniuses in a rock n'roll band....wait!!! ... with the honourable exception of Led Zep of course....
@@nobeoddy1664 not sure Bill ever regarded himself as 'genius' material - & the vaulting genius apparently had an unfortunate 'accident' in a swimming pool...Mick Keef & Charlie - yeah fair call
@@myronlarimer1943 Oh Yeah!! .... my bad - I've missed a few who are top-echelon .... it's just that IMVHO - Plant was is & always will be the greatest vocalist of the Rock & Roll era - Bohham will always be regarded as 'gold-standard' greatest drummer of all time - Page is one of the great geniuses of the guitar & Jones is simply an all-round musical polymath; ... having said that - Britain has also produced brilliant bands that for one reason or another never made the 'Uber Big League' of Rock & Roll - Troggs & Kinks & Animals spring to mind....
George was a fine guitarist in his style, and I don’t care that he had issues with some songs. People think that Paul was not handy with a guitar because he played bass. Their fusion was one thing that made the Beatles a great group. George had a tough time with the “HELP!” lead too, but worked it out. Beautiful and clean, I love listening to his work.
AWESOME, AS ALWAYS, MY FRIEND!!!!!!!!!!... & AS ALWAYS, EVERYONE'S GETTING THIS!!!!!!!!!!! By the way, I don't see a Vox AC30 back there... 🙀😸 YOU NEED ONE!!!!!!!!!!!
One thing George was very good at according to Paul was his ability to come up with memorable fills to songs which actually made some of their best songs better. Paul actually said in an interview that he thought George was one of the "all time greats". Pretty good compliment actually. He cited the acoustic fill in the song "And I love her" as an example of Georges uncanny ability to add unusual riffs and fills to songs.
Despite what revisionist McCartney says now he was often impatient with Harrison's guitar work and would play the parts himself.
hmmm.. that's just the melody though. It's a strange comment considering that. Unless he's not talking about the solo but the 4 note riff that starts the verses. Which is nice.
@@simongregory3114 Yes, the solo is a competently and very tastefully played transposed melody line played on a classical guitar. What Paul was talking about is the intro and end piece of the song. They didn't have a beginning and George came up with thisd simple melody that works with the two basic chords.
Completely agree and I wouldn't have repeated your wise words had I read them first.
Simple but beautiful.
John and Paul showed up to the studio with full knowledge of what they wanted in their songs. George had to learn the songs and then improvise or produce what they wanted.
He was still a kid. Let's all go back and listen to tracks we did when we were kids.
That opening black and white photo was fairly shocking!
Exactly. Well said.
What an excuse, The difference between them Paul and George it was 9 mos.
Deported from Germany 17 yrs old
@@stevemorris6790 If you remember, the difference of just one grade in school could make a very big difference. One day I was making plastic models, alone in my room the next I cared nothing about anything other then GIRLS and was out the door after school meeting up with my buddies who wanted to chase same. 9 month's could make a very big difference then, guitar playing included.
The studio is a tough place to get used to when you're starting out. Then on top of it duplicating what's in george m and Paul's head... Nothing but props to George.
@@NoMoreMrNice Actually, it's "ageing head" -- that's what's in the lyric sheet, and in George's handwritten lyrics.
"Nothing but props to George" for not being ready for recording studios? 😏
I am sure few could compete with the dream team J & P... that is why few tracks from George or Ringo (drummer) rarely appeared in earlier albums...
See it was not *just* talent... Not *just* luck... It was hard work, long days, and inspiration.
In a word, A Hard Days Night
Didn't he say he never practised?
@@manfred747 I do not think you know what the word 'practice' means...
And you know it don't come easy....
Paul McCartney did the solo on Georges "Taxman" after George struggled with the solo. Geoff Emerick said "George, Ringo and John went for lunch and we put Paul on the solo and Paul was excellent in fast and intense solos.
George, all The Beatles, were young and still learning. As time went on, George became a very skilled, thoughtful and soulful player.
What a excuse the difference between Paul and George it was just 9 months.
So true. The story is four lads from Liverpool turned the world upside down. Great ride.
@@stevemorris6790 You are saying that 19 year old George Harrison should have been as good as one of the most talented musicians in history, because he was only nine months younger than him?
@@fatroberto3012 No, Roberto, I think he is saying that talking of age is (rightly or wrongly) a lame reason.
Plus an equal songwriter to his two big Beatle brothers!!
People would probably be surprised to find how many musicians in bands were sidelined in recording and studio players brought in to do their parts
Many groups in the 60's learned about the session musicians known as "The Wrecking Crew" who didn't require multiple takes to "get it right" (well, Brian Wilson the ultimate perfectionist aside) .
@@lubstorfkThe Wrecking Crew, The Swampers; The Funk Brothers; Booker T. And The MG’s, The Atlanta Rhythm Section. Shall I go on?
@mikeb5372 Not today. The music is cookie cutter. No one plays instruments. Videos are more about producers and directors, and choreographers are making millions.
I never thought George was the best guitarist from a technical perspective, like a session player has to be. But many of his guitar parts were incredibly creative, melodic and memorable. The Beatles songs wouldn't have been the same without them.
In Paul's auto-biography he says that the guitars, the way they are arranged, was totally George's IDEA. He took the a copy of the song home and worked on it by himself. Meaning he is trying to make this stuff up. He is not copying something or someone. He is CREATING!!! Because of Taxman people started this stuff. However, as Paul said, try playing And I Love Her without the riff that George came up with. Paul said without that riff it's a boring song. With it, it becomes a masterpiece. As Paul says in an interview "imagine that song without it"
You gotta love Sir Paul : So humble, down to earth and appreciative of other's talent. John Lennon said about his friend that he was musically "selfless" : Serving the other members of the band in his parts and able to write about other people's lives, about things he never really felt himself.
We who have overdubbed and recorded will sympathize and understand that all guitar tracks are not meant to be. Some just don't work. Thanks for the info.
Thanks for the view and perspective! Please share the video and channel for me!
@@the_guitar_trooper
isn't he just plays the part even faster then on the album original Ver here?
ruclips.net/video/vn0BUrrkr0A/видео.html
@@kalilan1111 Yes. this video by @the_guitar_trooper just cracked me up..
@@EmmaPeelman Well, Thankfully, 100 other people knew exactly what it meant and HaHaHa...were not impaired.
Most of George's solos, From Till There Was You to Something, were a whole lot closer to "brilliant" than to "competent". There's always been this faction that thinks Paul was better guitar player than George and a better drummer than Ringo - keep dreamin'.
Agree 100%. George was the best Beatles' guitarist without question.
Paul was a more distinctive and creative guitarist both as a soloist (Drive My Car, Taxman) and arranger (Mother Nature’s Son, Blackbird). But George played some great slide stuff (How Do You Sleep, Gimmie Some Truth) after the breakup.
Hey maybe Paul *was* "better" technically, but so what? But here's the thing about McCartney.. he knew what he had in front of him. He knew the Beatles was not "Paul McCartney Solo" and he acted accordingly. He knew what collaboration was all about.
I don’t dreaming Paul was so much better than George. There is that faction of george that think he was a genius. Dreaming about!
@@joebeamish George played very melodic solos, which he worked out in advance and played perfectly in the studio. He wasn't great at improvisation on demand, but he was technically a better all-around player than Paul, well versed in jazz chord voicings and music theory. Paul was more intuitive but not as educated musically.
Hey, just listen to "Old Brown Shoe" where George played a stinging lead solo AND an awesome bass part in Paul's absence
I believe he was showing off his bass prowess for Paul, in return for Paul's criticism of his lead playing. George was also very critical of Paul's bass part on "Something" in the studio, insisting that he do it the way George wanted it done.
And George's solo on Something is an all-time classic.
I thought for sure Taxman would get mentioned....Paul playing lead.
Not to diminish George's contribution to the band, it wasn't until I joined a Beatles tribute band with Tim Piper (as George) that I really appreciated George's work, man, that guy was a master at caged chords!!!!
Shows his ( poster's) agenda was biased to miss this.
That and helter skelter were the first i thought of
Yep; George did neither of those. They were played by McCartney. Legend has it that George was struggling to get the solo on Taxman right. Paul wanted to finish the song and move on, so in a flash of ‘impatience’/‘temper’, he picked up his own guitar, and overdubbed it. The irony being of course that Taxman was written by Harrison.
Helter Skelter; George wasn’t in the studio. Paul was always going to do it and did so. George isn’t on the track at all.
A lot of the latter went on in the ‘end days’. Ringo would often arrive in the studio to find that Paul had already locked the drums down by himself. Happened to George a lot too. At the end, it was mostly the Lennon/McCartney show with two part-time sidemen. And right at the end, ‘twas really just Paul, dotting the Is and crossing the Ts.
on "taxman", you can hear the exasperation in paul's playing, which luckily works for the song. one can only imagine what GH went through on this occasion- I think he was already getting used to the shitty end of the stick, & was remarkably stoical about it.
it's believed that he was avenged on "she said", by filling in on bass for an absent mccartney.
a lesser musician might've walked over the publishing, & the way his own songs weren't deemed good enough for the releases, but instead he addressed it directly ("northern song") & stuck at it, turning out some beautiful songs of his own despite things like (& you can watch this in both 'let it be' & peter jackson's remix, "get back") the arrangement process of 'GB', wherein there is never any discussion but that lennon is to play the solos... two of the same one, in fact, & with which he clearly struggles. macca even makes space for a third solo so that billy preston can be highlighted.... GH just takes it on the chin, despite the miserable time he's been given by macca & lennon over the previous days.
lennon: "if he doesn't come back, we'll get clapton in" & so on; bunch of deep reading here & in the 'ten days at twickenham' tapes, that didn't make it into either version of the flick:
amoralto.tumblr.com/post/68911122415/january-10th-1969-twickenham-film-studios
@@duncan-rmi Love To You and Within You/Without You are the best Beatles songs. (Honorable mention to Tomorrow Never Knows, Norwegian Wood and Baby You're a Rich Man, all made better because of George)
As a Fan of the Beatles since I was 12, I remember learning the guitar and that practice and patience come in hand when you reap the Rewards of your Hard Earned Work as George and myself did in the Years to come……I am 72 now and owe it to my Uncle and Father who taught me through love that nothing is impossible if you believe you will achieve…Greg😊
Same here my friend...I started playing guitar in 1965....I am now 73, and love working up Beatles tunes for my local Round Robin /Open mic.
Same here. Those guys brought me to start and learn playing guitar, a Framus like the one that John possessed and only was found recently. Played until my fingers bled but couldn't stop, anyway. Glorious times to remember 👍💯🤩
Very interesting, but small reproach when it contrasts with all Harrison accomplished. At 22 he was faced with inventing and executing all the lead guitar for the greatest band of all time, and he rose to the occasion. I do not envy what George had to go through in that booth with Lennon and McCartney and George Martin glaring while you came up with the goods on a track. The stress also probably caused his chain smoking. Without George no Beatles.
Glaring, you say!
No, there would still be Beatles and somebody else would have stepped up
Fantastic insight, just shows that George never stopped learning.
Very true!
Any musician...even session players, can have "off days." If you've ever heard the pianist's joke about playing in seven flats and getting kicked out of all of them, it may be easier to understand how musicians can encounter a "clam-dig." I had a reputation as a good session player in the '80s because of my ear. I couldn't read charts but I could usually nail a piano or bass part after hearing it once. My fingers got me into some trouble once on pieces written in C#. So they took me off the Steinway Model D and put me on a Korg SG that had a transpose feature. Sort of a Capo for piano. The customer didn't like the sound of the Korg so I was put back on the Steinway. but by then I was intimidated and couldn't play the part to save my soul. My older brother-a session drummer-who was in studio, came over, got on the Steinway, and nailed the part on his first take. My fingering got me into trouble, but my head is what ultimately defeated me. There's no shame in having off days. I can also see how John and Paul's feedback could make matters worse.
Great post and perspective! Thanks for the view too! Please share the videos and channel for me!
Yeah Paul was a hard taskmaster, and John could be downright surly when he was in a "mood." In the end it turned out good for George, since he had a great solo career. 😀
Often he would be learning the song for the first time in the studio. Some takes of a lot of songs were when he had just heard it.
True. Many compositions were presented cold on the day of recording.
Thanks for the view and comment! Please share this puppy for me!!
@@the_guitar_trooper I was wondering if you have done an examination of or 5 things I didn't know about the song "I'll Get You In The End". It was one of the songs I really liked when I was young. Thanks.
@@June-d5q Not yet, and thanks for reminding me! It’s still on the research queue. “ I’ll Get You”
Excellent point. Most musicians have time to take something home and practice it.
Very interesting. Now I don't feel so bad when I mess up.
@@hairyhondaman HA!!
What Mr. Harrison may of had issues with, with some of these songs, he made up for with his intro riff to “And I Love Her”, making a great song into masterpiece.
Harrison later in life admitted that as a guitar player he never was as good as he could have been because he always been "lazy" about practicing. He said the same about Ringo as a drummer. Harrison candidly confessed all his life since learning to play as a child, even later in life, he'd go intermittent weeks without picking up a guitar. Quite a contrast to his close friend and peer Eric Clapton who was known to have spent 8 hours(in his youth)a day practicing and the legendary Jimi Hendrix who spent over 12 hours day practicing.
Hey - Thanks for the view and the great post!!
Some of the vocal harmonies that George nailed were simply outstanding.
Excellent point!
George’s harmonies with Paul were magical!
@@lesbois53 Yep
Ça devait pas être facile avec les 2 autres c était le début en tout cas j ai adoré ses compositions par la suite.
@@jean-louislanquetin535 Oui, tout à fait. Je suis de Liverpool, et j’ai vu les Beatles au Cavern pendant les années 60’s. George avait 17 ans. Pas trop bon à la guitare, mais après son confiance a grandi, ses chansons comme “Something” et “ Here comes the Sun” sont pareils des chansons de Lennon et McCartney. J’éspère que mon français est ok. Bon courage.
Best part of being in a good team if one of you can't do it someone else can and it's OK.
Good point! Thanks for the view! Please help me to spread the love 💕 by sharing the videos and the channel!
George was an amazing lead player…..he’s solos were so melodic and well thought out and suited the song perfectly. I’ll forgive him any songs he couldn’t add a great solo to. We’ve all been there if we are honest.
Sometimes a musician simply cannot "hear" what someone else is trying to explain...there've been times that I would ask our bass player, who kept messing up a part on a song, to hand me his bass and then I, along with the drummer, would play the part several times in a row and then it would "click".
@@avanm420 I totally agree with you. I despair of social media sometimes. Probably showing my age as someone who grew up without it. The Beatles were my biggest influence and made me want to play guitar, be in a band, and write and record songs. If I play a solo, George is always a big influence on me in that he was melodic and his solos always served the song. But yes, definitely click bait! I love that The Beatles left bits in recordings that people would edit out now....thank heavens there was no auto tune then either.
yea, they didn't exactly give George many tries on those songs, plus he had to deal with Lennon/Paul constantly changing their minds.
@@avanm420 Agree.... George was a great guitarist. Eric Clapton thought so..
I grew up bouncing tracks using sound on sound on a reel to reel recorder and later 4 tracks. Unless you have worked with this set-up you will never appreciate the discipline needed to get tracks done quickly and playing live with other musicians. We are spoilt these days. I'd love to take my MacBook air running Logic Audio to Abbey Road in 1963 and see how different the Beatles first album would have sounded. Some of the new mixes coming out using demixing and remixing are exciting as on Revolver and the Red and Blue albums.
@avanm420 did you even watch the video? George was a very limited lead guitarist compared to the best. That's simply a fact.
He was a better guitar player than I'll ever be
George was an integral part of the overall sound of the group. Lot's of his work was in the form of picking chords and giving filling out the sound and putting little perfect riffs where something was needed. As you know Paul started out as a guitarist along with John and George and switched to bass. I think he always resented that and was very critical of George. He also played lead on Taxman. Paul had a weird out of time-ness on guitar that was really a big part of the B's sound. George would add a little sparkle to the sound that was part of the sound by hitting an unexpected note in a chord. He was not a riff guitarist in the beginning but he really could pull of all the 50s riffs.
You are my favourite RUclipsr, keep up the good work, your videos are brilliant
Wow, thanks!
McCartney always said that their early songs had to be shown to George and Ringo in the studio and they had about an hour and a half to record the track.. George was a brilliant guitarist..
But Guitar George knew all the chords
said Dire Straights. nice
But he DIDN'T wanna make it cry or sing ...
@@flynnlizzy5469 although his guitar gently wept...
Well, Harry doesn't mind if he doesn't show up. You see, he has a daytime job and I heard he is doing alright.
@@flynnlizzy5469 strictly rhythm?
GT , Others have mentioned TAXMAN but did George try it before Paul did it?
I just found you today & glad I did! I'm 70.
George’s vocal harmonies added such a lot to the Beatles’ songs. Your comments are very fair, though. Thanks.
Very interesting, GT! Every time I get a notification from you, I know it’s going to be great. We love the Beatles.
@@johnwright8612 Hi, John!! Thanks SO VERY MUCH for your continued support!
I know you're a Beatle fan but these things need to be remembered: George was the youngest and he and Ringo early on had to learn John and Paul's songs on the spot with no rehearsal before the session. Furthermore, Harrison came up with, on the spot, the 4-note riff that begins "And I Love Her." (Imagine the song, beautiful as it is, without it.) He also was the one who had the idea to switch part of the bridge of "We Can Work it Out" from 4/4 to 3/4, and worked out the backwards guitar bit on "I'm Only Sleeping." Harrison also played bass very well on "She Said, She Said" because Paul walked out on the session after an argument.
Overall, these issues notwithstanding, Harrison's guitar work was far better than competent, and for every rough patch there are many corresponding bright spots. Listen to his early solo on the cover of "Till There Was You." Then, there is the later work, the solo in one take on "Something" (which he had to get right because he played it with the orchestra as there were no more tracks available) and the way he kicks ass on the 1970 solo in "Let It Be" and his bits on the three-part solo near the end of the "Abbey Road" medley.
Not to mention the fact that from 1965 on his songs were as good as John's and Paul's, which is not to slag them but to give George some proper credit.
I tire of this slighting George stuff. There is little discussion of how he superbly assimilated what he learned of Indian music into his guitar playing creating a style completely his own but nonetheless highly influential. Anyone critical, the late Geoff Emerick included, is invited to try to come up with songs like "While My Guitar..." "Here Comes the Sun" or "I, Me, Mine" and see how they do. Then there's "All Things Must Pass" which stands proudly with any Beatles solo album and well above most of them.
Fine to do a reality check on George. Yeah he had some difficulties now and again and Paul had to step in. This above is the other part of the reality check.
Well said! Peace, Sal 💪🏻🎸
@@SalsBodybuildingArchivesCheers. ✌️
George did have some trouble occasionally but who doesn't? He had far more good moments than bad. Yes there are always people in comments who enjoy giving George hell, but the same thing happens to Paul and John. Very few criticize Ringo, except the rabid Pete Best fans. I feel pretty sure the vast majority of the haters have never picked up an instrument, much less played complicated parts. Opinions are like a-holes, everyone has one. George is and will always be my favorite Beatle regardless. RIP dear George- you will always be missed and remembered by your true fans! 💔🎸🥰
Hell. Paul still can't read music. That is known as an illiterate musician.
@@mojooftheg5961 He never wanted to learn, and formal musical training with all its "rules" would have been an obstacle for them. They had the sound in their ears and they knew how to get it onto tape. Seems to have worked out very well.
I was expecting to hear how Paul took the lead on Taxman after George struggled, and how he brought in Eric Clapton for While My Guitar Gently Weeps, but this was all new information to me. Thanks!
Lennon also did a lot of soloing I understand as well as Paul. If you look at films of the '64 and '65 performances on all sorts of shows (Ed Sullivan, BBC, Ready, Steady, Go - that stuff), come time for a solo, the camera always seems to go to faces - leaving you to wonder who is really soloing - particularly during the more elevated stuff (comparatively speaking). I was watching the early Stones, and the camera went straight to Keith on his solo, and you could see all of his hand-work. For that matter, the Stones were dressing as individuals at least as early as Feb. 65, and Jagger and Richards were already animated on stage. The Beatles remained with their matching suits right through their last live gig (I don't count the rooftop concert - don't get me started) in '66, and still had no stage moves to speak of.
To give George a break, no one ever accused the Beatles - collectively or individually - of being 'session men'. Has anyone seen the Peter Jackson movie?
My take on the Peter Jackson film was that the band as a whole were pretty sloppy when they would first get back together and after a couple of days they got very tight.
They became very accomplished session musicians after they stopped touring. “Something”, “Come Together”, side two of “Abbey Road” demonstrate how good they were. Sublime.
Musically, John was an excellent rhythm guitar player who could also play some mean lead licks and performed some interesting work on mouth organ, Paul was superlative on bass, (an instrument he didn't even want to play), could also play lead and was a competent keyboard player, Ringo was a very talented drummer and perfect for this group. George created some great licks especially when playing his Gretsch Country Gentlemen and he wrote four great songs ("If I Needed Someone", "Taxman", "Here Comes The Sun", "Something") as a Beatle although there are just too many guitar players that are much better than he was for him to ever be considered great. He performed his responsibility to his bandmates and came up with some great guitar breaks but as this vid shows, only most of the time.
@@MarkRoberts-bj2me Well said.
@@MarkRoberts-bj2me Rubbish. Nobody said George was "great". But he was the best guitarist in the Beatles.
George had guitar chops early on with his Chuck Berry riffs and his arrangement of Till There Was You and his guitar work on it. Paul was a wanna-be lead guitarist who was forced to play bass because nobody else would do it after Stu Sutcliff left the band. George was stifled in his playing by Paul's meddling and micro-managing right from the start. It got so bad that George lost interest in guitar for a few years and picked up the sitar instead. He became a fantastic slide player in his solo years.
George was not a strong lead player in the Early and Mid-60's, but by the time they did the roof top performance in 1969 George played some good solos on dig a pony and one after 909.
.... which we never really get to SEE! When the solo in "909" is playing out, the camera will focus on ANYTHING but George and his hands! I used to think it was camera-incompetence, now I tend to think it´s flawed musicianship, which called for some outside overdub!
Not a strong lead player??? All My Loving by itself negates that claim.
@@BeatlesCentricUniverse No it doesn't. It's a beginner level 3rd rate Carl Perkins knock off.
@@johnnyrocker7495 Hahaha disagree.
I've played in a band that did A Hard Day's Night.. and they didn't get how unnaturally hard that solo is to nail. It's a keyboard riff.
I've heard comments years ago that if George played it, anyone can. Well, I am someone and I can't always play any number of his work. He undeniably was a guitar and songwriter genius, especially after the Beatles.
A lot of people say the same about Ringo's stuff, but many great drummers can really appreciate what he does.
That's funny! "If George can play it, anyone can". Thanks also for the reality check, from "someone".
We also have to remember that guitarists these days have the advantages of: tabs (previously, there was on classical notation), tabs and leadsheets for any song you want online, teachers who can reproduce the original off-the-record, youtube, etc.
George and the other Beatles had none of these. They learned their instruments with just 45RPM singles and their ears. I was a bit the same, starting guitar in the 1970s. I got nowhere! Just couldn't do it!
If you've tried teaching yourself from records, and see the clips of Paul Meeting John and playing "Twenty Flight Rock", and then George meeting him and playing "Raunchy" you understand why these were so impressive at the time.
Yes. “My Sweet Lord” comes to mind. Cough, cough.
You're not much of a player if you can't do Harrison.
@@johnnyrocker7495 Perhaps duplicating it isn't that tough for a good guitarist, but creating that stuff is a whole different story.
Georges solo on bluesest blues with Alvin Lee was great
George was always my favorite Beatle. I once heard him say he would be a really good guitar player if only he practiced. I still think he’s pretty darn good.
I wonder if they had anytime to themselves during those heyday years.
He simply underwent evolution, progress, while already being in the band. His talent preceded his craft that duly came a little later. Sorry, just not everybody is Michael Schenker, so skillful at 17 years old. Nonetheless, over time George acquired quality and his own style. By the days of _All Things Must Pass_ he was really brilliant - perhaps not with any genre, but surely within his groove.
Being born in July of 1996, I have nothing to say about these guys: they were extremely successful, but so were Stones, Byrds( America's answer,) Beach Boys. You are absolutely amazing with the particular dates( which I thoroughly enjoy!) ITS always a snapshot in time for me. You are the best! You don't need to to apologize for anything! You are extremely knowledgeable as well! As a lead vocalist in my third band, I am learning just how difficult trying to break into the music business really is! Joey in Cleveland
Well now I don’t feel so bad when it takes forever to learn a solo
I was born in 1963 and to be honest, never listened to the Beatles unless something was on the radio. Music hit me in '73 and of course the scene had completely changed from the start of the Beatles and I was very much a child of my generation. But now, in my sixties, I find myself going back to the 60s and digging into discographies of many bands, of course The Beatles being one of them. It's very interesting to see the progression of pop or rock music through that generation.
This was a very interesting video and I appreciate the insight into the most pivotal band of all time.
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George was the lead guitar player for the best band in the world, but he wasn't the greatest guitar solo player in the world. Good! Whiz-bang guitar solos are a dime a dozen and are way-over-emphasized in rock music in my opinion. Dazzling, million-note solos would have ruined Beatles music. What George did instead was something much more subtle and much, much, better and more important. His guitar work all throughout their recording career was incredibly original and inventive and contributed in a huge way to creating Beatles magic, which no one else ever came close to. He was irreplaceable in the band. Without him as a member, we, in the States anyway, would never had heard of the Beatles. Plus his looks, his charm and charisma, his wit--irreplaceable. As far as I'm concerned, it amounts to this: There was one guitarist in the band, JohnPaulGeorge. Their combined playing resulting in the best guitar-based music we've ever heard. It doesn't make any difference who played what.
Sometimes he would just play the melody. When the melodic material is strong sometimes that's the best thing to do. George really improved when he also started playing the sitar. I think the wide action helped his guitar playing as well.
George Harrison as The Beatles lead player did a pretty good job of thait. My ears told me so. The George Harrison single, While My Guitar Weeps For Me, the solo was recorded by Eric Clapton. During their heyday during the early 1960s - 70s, any technical inadequacies swept right over the heads of the vast numbers of fans who enjoyed the music The Beatles made with producer, George Martin. Of course there were fans of earlier pop music singers and musicians who blew the charts apart riding high until the Mersey Bands including the Beatles, displayed a raw energy from their seaport heritage introducing Rock 'a' Billy and Rock n Roll from The New World, to the Old and to a new generation of youngsters seeking music they could identify with. A walk on the wild side. Before them was Cliff Richard and his seminal British Rock n Roll single, Move It. Recorded using mostly studio session players. Where Cliff was an imitation Elvis, The Beatles were rough cut in the bars and strip joints on the Reeperbahn of Hamburg, a large German seaport. Pop vs Rock. Just different, not better. Cliff Richard, became a lounge crooner as the Beatles and the new bands growing popular during that time, liked the American blues influenced music and the overtly sexual moves of the bands singer, Mick Jaeger of the Rolling Stones. Where everybody came to love Cliff and The Shadows, the Moms of young teenage girls did not think the same about The Stones as their daughters did.
@ronniechilds2002 GREAT comment!
Makes me feel better about the times my guitar timing was off when I was a young musician. George and the others were my inspiration to get into music. It doesn’t diminish my admiration to know they were also human.
I spent hours trying to figure out “I’ll Follow The Sun” back in the day. I didn’t know enough guitar back then to emulate what was on the recording.
HA!, HA!....Got to hand it to you, my friend. You're very brave to have waded into some dangerous waters on this one, mate. But, lets be realistic. George himself would say he wasn't the lead player that people thought he was. He kept it honest and was very upfront about it.....always. Didn't try to hide or woodshed anything. IMO it's what kept him the most authentic of the Beatles. He still was an excellent rhythm player, singer and songwriter. His legacy will do fine. 🥃👍🍸
Beatles most streamed song : Here Comes The Sun. Says it all...
@@angelomisterioso ……And, I rest my case! 👏
Imagine trying to record that many songs in one day. Brand new songs at that. These moments are common. No shame on George. Great video. And ,as I read in one of the comments. Always good to tune you in.
A careful listen to a lot of the Beatles' early work, especially the guitar solo in "I saw Her Standing There" shows George quite ill at ease -- what the hippies a few years later would call "uptight". Paul was clearly a more technically accomplished player, although better at what today is called shredding than at creating charismatically melodious lines. Back in the day, "shredding" was king and George was intimidated. When he finally did find his guitar voice and Paul wasn't around, George created exquisitely beautiful rock and roll lead guitar.
Harrison once said that McCartney ruined him as a guitar player. That speaks volumes as to how Harrison really felt about McCartney.
@@goplad1 Yes, Paul would tell George what to play, which annoyed him to all end. Paul not technically better than George. George was the best lead guitarist.
@@whodidit99yeah George was the best technical guitarist of the group. Paul could come up with some interesting stuff though like the Taxman solo--which was just wild.
"Shredding"?!!!! Are you having a fkin laugh mate?
Don't agree. In my opinion, you can't look at 1964 music through the lens of 2024, comparing them to later musicians, many of which may never have picked up a guitar, let alone be successful in music if not for the Beatles. There is nothing wrong with that solo imho, certainly for it's time and early place in the Beatles music. In the U.S. emerging bands often were not allowed to play their own instruments in the studio, studio time being pricey, i.e. Wrecking Crew. The Beatles played their own instruments, with rare exceptions for strings and horns, George Martin on piano, or special guests like Preston or Clapton. No band carried the clout to tie up a studio with engineers for nearly a year, as with Sgt. Pepper and the Beatles.
For many years, I was impressed by the hammer-ons in the "Hard Day's Night" solo. They are difficult to play at full speed. For me, pull-offs are easier. It was comforting to find out that George had problems with them too, and that he had to work hard on getting solos right to play live. It's one thing to come up with a good solo in the studio and have the opportunity to do lots of takes to pick out a good one. It's another thing to nail them consistently live. Just shows that these guys were really hard-working professionals.
Speaking of Eric, his dear friend John Mayall just died. He posted a tribute on Instagram. Eric doesn't look good, and it sounds like he is struggling to breathe. I didn't realize he was so ill!
Oh wow. ANd, although it may not be the direct cause, I knew that Eric’s abuses earlier in his life would catch up with him someday.
@@the_guitar_trooper Well, yes. The drugs were, I'm sure, a major way to go to Jesus sooner than you planned. But look at Keith Richards--he's like the energizer bunny! I think it's all in the genes. A person can be dying at 58, or keep going to 100! You never know.
Mayall was very important to Eric and was instrumental in Eric's growth in the blues and understanding of music in general. Eric said in his tribute that John was not only a mentor, but he was as much a "father like" figure in his life as he was a close friend.
For a man who never met his birth father and who had limited male influence in his early life from his grandfather, such a man as John Mayall greatly impacted Eric's life.
Filled with emotion, it must have been very hard for Eric to make the short and heartfelt tribute so soon after John's passing. He's struggling with his emotions, not his ability to breathe.
His singing at concerts this year in 2024 has been crisp, strong and on point, unlike 82 year old Paul McCartney, who, bless his heart, has lost a great deal of range and timber in his singing. Paul has rocked the world for 60 years but his sound quality has diminished.
Eric, on the other hand, is still within a pleasing tone of octave and timber, is not struggling either singing or playing the guitar.
Chalk it up to him being an old guy who lost one of the anchors that sustained him for many years. He had a similar reaction when giving a tribute to his very close friend, B.B. King, several years ago.
Eric is only a few years older than me, and I find myself getting choked up more as close and dear friends pass away. Realize that our reliance on our "public face" to disguise our emotions wanes as the years on the calendar grow larger.
I saw that YT vid on the music observer channel. He looks unwell besides grieving his mentor passed
@@the_guitar_trooperhe took the vaxx!
Yet another great episode, Guitar Trooper! Looking forward to more things I don't know about songs!
Hi Kenny! Stay tuned!!
Live George nailed the solo to Hard Day's Night perfectly at normal speed
Check the 64 show in France, the solo is amazing.
Sometimes things don't work, and someone else might have a better way to play a part.
That was one of their strengths.
The video clip from Palais De Sports has overdubbed audio for the solo. You can even hear the piano. The Hollywood Bowl ‘64, on the other hand, sounds to me like a true live performance by George.
He just needed a little time to practice it slow.
I am a big Beatle fan and always v.happy with new information on the recording of the albums.
A master of Slide in his solo career and a very good Beatles lead guitar in general!
He was an excellent slide player.
In Hunter Davies' first edition of their biography that only documented them through 1967, George's mother would describe how hard George worked on the guitar early on. She said he'd play till his fingers bled. She described his concentration as intense.
Excellent detective work! Thought for sure that you would have included "Taxman." Also in George Martin's book about the making of Sgt. Pepper, Martin points out that after Harrison finished the guitar fills for the intro song, Martin was pleased with the work. The next day Paul redid everything to Harrisons dismay. I could only imagine how pissed he was.
I think the "right look" may have also been very important in the early Beatles - George certainly had the right look ... Lennon & McCartney were well aware of Mick Greens guitar prowess - he was in the skiffle trio, who were runners up to Quarrymen in a 1950s battle of the bands competition in Tottenham, north London - Mick was however a large burly guy who did not fit the Beatle's carefully cultivated "stage image" ...IMVHO.
Harrison once said in an interview that McCartney ruined him as a guitar player. George had an inferiority complex when it came to his guitar playing in the studio mainly because McCartney would get impatient with him and steal his thunder by either playing over his guitar part or taking the lead guitar work away from George. It's no wonder George didn't much care for Paul.
I've done my share of studio work. In fairness to George, i would imagine John & Paul had worked these songs ahead of the recording sessions so they both knew what they wanted to hear. George was probably hearing them or playing them for the first time and, unlike us, he didn't have the benefit of hearing the completed song to understand what was wanted. Hope that makes sense.
George took some time to develop. A really great video.
George Harrison's riffs were an important feature of Beatles' songs but no wonder I had trouble emulating the Hard Days Night solo. Thank you for showing it was done by tape speed up. I had to use hybrid picking.
The Major/Minor riff in 'You Can't do that' was George's idea ....
I appreciate the information. George Martin explained that the Hard Days night solo had to be learned in one day and George couldn’t learn it that fast. Quite understandable. However George’s solo on Till There Was You shows a very competent guitarist at just 18 years old. In this era of seeing how studio musicians were used by many American bands, the few examples only point out how good the Beatles were.
Well said
Years ago I commented on some guitar forum that Harrison, during much of his tenure with the Beatles, was not a good guitar player and had to have help with his solos. I was roasted by his rabid fans. Thank you for this vindication.
Hardly vindication.
George Martin's half speed technique to get Harrison to play the solo the best he can is just amazing! No wonder he's one of the great Legends of music production in history. And you, you deserve many thanks for bringing this to our attention. Seriously, I watched 30 Beatles videos a week. Few have as much research as yours.
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Yes, also this makes me feel better when I struggle to complete the solo note for note in my own fingerstyle arrangement!
I was recording my piano track and the first time I did it I was 99.999999 there ! The very last note , I hit the wrong key on a , four plus minute , piano banging song ( I did not have the ability to jump into tracks at that time ) . I had to redo the song with every mistake ( good old days ) It took me an hour to get it right ! I had to stop at the 9th try , take a deep breath , collect myself , and then spend the rest of the hour it took me , to get it right ! I recorded bass with a blues band and of the eleven songs we did , I made no mistakes and did not have to redo any of my work ( ( re track ) . I sat around then and watched everyone else struggling ? Luck or talent ? %$#@ing Luck Baby ! People don't know how hard it is to do it right , no matter how long it takes !
Fascinating, it's great to see how much goes into getting a song just perfect. Albeit, many listeners that aren't musicians or have an ear for it probably wouldn't even notice many of the errors. Thanks for bringing these things to light.
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The Beatles were a pop group not virtuoso musicians, which is why we have session musicians, people who can deliver quickly and efficiently and get the job done.
What does that mean? They blew out those early albums. Those songs they have been playing in clubs in Liverpool and Germany for 8 hours a night. They wrote the songs and created what you hear, and the Wrecking Crew would not have done them any better in my opinion and I love and respect the wrecking crew. How those songs were played were how the Beatles wrote them to be played. Part of the genius of not being musicians that read music and knew all the rules was the fact that the Beatles didn't have to follow the rules and they didn't.
Paul also took the solo on “Taxman”, as well as Clapton on “While my Guitar Gently Weeps”, Lennon played the solo on “Honey Pie” and “Get Back”. It wasn’t a competition where Harrison’s contributions were in question, rather it was who could come up with the best part for the song. George didn’t feel slighted by McCartney’s contributions, rather Paul had the right solo at the time.
Thanks for the post!
Us Beatles fans need to stick together! How about video or series on John, Paul and George’s guitars/bases during the Beatles years. You seem to have all the knowledge needed. 👍
Hi Pete!
You know I always thought that was a great idea too, but I ran a couple of tests on shorts and they were only moderate performers. I don’t know.
@@the_guitar_trooper I’ll have to look for the shorts
@@PeteG143 they are over a year ago, I may have pulled them. 1 on Harrison, 1 on Lennon. Macaa had too many for me to keep up with.
George was fantastic! Not too concerned that he had a couple days that he wasn't feeling it.
Thanks for participating!
Excellent episode, Mate
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People forget just how young they were on those early albums and were contracted to produce 2 albums a year along with separate singles, record the albums in a couple of days while constantly touring doing two or three shows a day. There must have been a lot of pressure.
Yep. The pressures of a recording contract are never seen by fans.
you have understand he was still very young - he did well for being under 25 years of age....
He was only 14 when he auditioned for 17 year old John - & he passed muster on the strength of his ability to hold & arpeggiate a single chord - as per:
ruclips.net/video/PguZn6MpF-Y/видео.html
After all, Paul was a whopping 8 months older than George.
All of George's solos could be hummed almost immediately after first hearing it. Listen to George's guitar work in CRY FOR A SHADOW from 1963. Simply amazing!
George played with feel and as such wasn't bound to rote playing, therefore as a creative guitar player every once in a while he'd change up what he was doing, most of the time it worked, and as you pointed out, sometimes it just wouldn't due to mood, atmosphere, circumstances and timing, being a Beatle was tough on all of them. Ringo, Paul, John and George all had development mistakes, but like perfectionists they worked them out and I'd say they did a great job of it. The proof was in the final cut recordings as it is in all cases. I'll never be down on any one of them, ever.
SO INTERESTING! I DON'T REMEMBER GEOFF MENTIONS THAT IN "HERE, THERE AND EVERYWHERE". I KNEW ABOUT THE PIANO SOLO HALF SPEED RECORDING IN IN MY LIFE, BUT IT NEVER CROSSED MY MIND THEY WERE USING THAT TECHNIC FOR GUITARS AS WELL!
Yeah- Martin used tape speed techniques a lot more than many folks realize.
@@the_guitar_trooper THANKS FOR SHARING YOUR VAST KNOWLEDGE:) HAVE YOU EVER BEEN TO ANY OF THEIR SESSIONS? I GOT LUCKY TO HAVE WORKED WITH ALAN PARSONS, BUT WE NEVER SPOKED ABOUT THE SPEEDING UP TECHNIC.
I just hope you won't tell us that it wasn't John Lennon who sang Revolution #9.
That would destroy The Beatles for me. 😂
HA. HAHHA. HAHHAHAHAHAHAHA
Interesting piece, and these problems shed light on the "Let It Be" kerfuffle between Paul and George. Harrison, as a guitarist, was known more for his sliding notes (e.g., "Something in the Way She Moves") and forays into Indian music than for his virtuosity. But that set of work along with his songwriting certainly made him an indispensible member of the group; another example of the group's output being greater than that of the sum of the parts.
Well said!
He was a little more than "competent". George famously designed his solos to fit and support the song - not to show what a great guitarist he was. His solos for "Til There Was You". "And I Love Her". "Let It Be" (Naked version, not the Spector disaster), and "Something" are among the greatest in all rock. Plus, listen to the BBC sessions when he shows what a great rock n' roll guitarist he could be.
My comment is just that I was surprised that you didn't mention that it was Paul, not George, who ended up playing the guitar solo on George's song, Tax Man, on the Revolver album. Very interesting watch...thanks for this one, and hope you and yours are doing great!
Hi Rob! And thanks as always for your support!!
Perhaps people should also do a "reality check" on John and Paul's playing. I'm sure there are plenty.
Like John’s bass line on The Long and Winding Road.
Honestly, for historical records & the archivists this is part of their story and presented appropriately. But, for me, what we didn’t know we didn’t need to know, it was and is enough to love the Beatles and their music. Happy we had ‘em at all!
Well said!
George was the first to admit he didn't practice. But his amazing artful contributions (far too many to mention) outweighed his off days, for sure. Another good GT focus! 👍
@@guarddave Thanks as always for the support!!
I only know of George admitting he "didn't practice" in the context of after the Beatles became famous, and him admitting that he could have been a better guitar player "if I practiced".
I suspect he practiced obsessively when he started out and before he met the Beatles, and probably in their early years.
The only "proof" I can give is his famous playing of "Raunchy" for John, when he was introduced to him by Paul. To be able to do that as a teenager in the 1950s, without the benefit of tabs (as we have today) and with little instruction, is a sign of much practice! Moreover, to be able to play Chuck Berry and the other standards as a member of the band during the early years is also a sign of practice. (They aren't easy!)
@@stephenhosking7384True
ps. I' ve just seen a video where we learned that when George first picked up a guitar as a teenager he "practiced till his fingers bled". When, at age 14, he was invited to join the Quarrymen, he was a better guitar player than Paul.
As for how much he practiced after, say, 1965, we have that one quip from him that he would have been a better player if he'd practiced, but I've also heard his wife, Patti Boyd, say of being married to both George and Eric Clapton, that both played guitar "all the time". Maybe George didn't count hours-per-day noodling as "practice".
@@stephenhosking7384 regarding the bleeding fingers: this can only happen if you do not practice for quite a while at all and then do something like playing 10 hours straight. If you practice regularly it cannot happen.
Video creator: George couldn't play these solos.
Also video creator: "Compentent".
With studio work - it had to be as perfect as the “chief recording engineer “ fells it should be- and the tape doesn’t lie- so frustrating sometimes- could be a matter of musical timing- or how much time you gonna spend on a piece- If given time George probably could have nailed it but it’s harder under pressure- George was an Amazing talent!!
The Pressure Paul and John Put him under would make anyone loose his focus. He was n great part of group so dont badmouth him now. His first solo album after their break up was the best of the four members.
As a guitarist from the 60's and still playing I dont find anything wrong with any of Georges so called mistakes. Sixties record producers would often not like this and that but could never pin it down. George can up with many great guitar licks which by todays standards are just out of this world.
George called in Gary Moore to complete a guitar part The Traveling Wilburys were struggling with.....George said "It took Gary 5 minutes" to complete it. 🎸
George was a bit of a highly valuable diamond in the rough. He just needed some extra time to grow. His sitar work in Beatles was great. Obviously he had a good ear and was open and receptive to new sounds. And his slide guitar playing that he developed later on is wonderful. Very melodic! Props to George and the Beatles! Still the best rock/pop group.
The one that's always amazed me is 'Till there was you.' Sounding so accomplished, it's hard to believe it is George & not a session musician.
That solo is a masterpiece. And he did it live without a hitch!
Yes, and there is footage of him playing the solo flawlessly live.
I saw George play live and his lead guitar on song "Hari's On Tour" was awesome.
Winter, 1974-75!
That is the song that inspired me to become a guitarist. Not anything Paul or John did. George was by far the best guitarist in the Beatles. Paul could never play those beautiful jazz chords. Paul's constant belittling of George's lead playing caused him to lose his desire for the guitar for a few years, so he picked up the sitar and became fluent on it. Then as the Beatles were coming to an end, he got back into guitar and slide guitar ("My Sweet Lord"). His "Something" solo is a classic and he really rips it up on "Old Brown Shoe". He also played eye-opening bass on "Old Brown Shoe". George was not an egotist like Paul, but he was the backbone of the Beatles.
You nut! You had me laughing in the first few minutes. Great detail and I liked your commentary. When you write and perform arguably three or four of the worlds best songs I think you can stand a little mud that gets kicked on you in the process, But you point out how even the legendary Beatles had obstacles they had to overcome, which they did well. George "While My Guitar Gently Weeps" Harrison's place in music history is safe.
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Right, McCartney was a very particular perfectionist, as well as an underrated guitar player.
The first Beatle recording I heard in the sixties and it was "I Want To Hold Your Hand". Being in a local band I love the simple sound of the Beatles in their early albums. But, it was that song with Harrison's guitar riffs the caught my attention and made me a Beatle's fan.
Me too! And I distinctly remember that it sounded like John said “want to hold your hair” on the last verse! LOL. Ahhhh. Those tiny AM radio speakers.
This is pretty common stuff here these are the reasons why most groups/ producers use high end session players..
Good point.
Okay, a thumb's up and a comment; I was expecting a word about Taxman but hey, you did not mention 1966 but only three earlier tracks from 1963 to 1965. Good "detective" work from you and got your point made clear and not mean at all. Sweet to play Something in the background for the conclusion. Thank you little old man. ;-)
Poor George, we all have off days.
10-4 on that!
According to Geoff Emerick, George spent hours working out a solo for "I'll Follow The Sun" but Paul didn't like it. Paul , in an effort to show something more along the lines of what he was looking for, picked up the guitar and simply played the melody sliding from one note to the next. Everyone approved and that's what went on the record. (And I imagine George wasn't happy about it).
Thanks for the post!
That's not what Emerick wrote at all! According to him, on the first few takes John played the solo but George Harrison complained he'd been left out. So George took over but no-one was that happy with his solo, so says Emerick. Nevertheless, George Martin decided they had to move on and George's solo stayed on the record. Nothing whatsoever about Paul playing it! Emerick claims he can hear the hesitancy in George's playing on the released record. Sounds fine to me, and definitely sounds like Emerick had a score to settle with George. He even admitted he didn't like him. A lot of this anti-George stuff has come from that book and been refuted by the likes of engineer Ken Scott. Later in the book Emerick does seem to come around to George and gives him some grudging respect.
Nice clarification.@@gettinhungrig2
Who made Paul the boss?!
@@mikec3777 Yeah, how dare he have a say in the songs he wrote.
Let's face it, everyone has their off days. George was a brilliant guitarist and the only one of the Beatles that had musical schooling before becoming a Beatle. Yet another informative & interesting video from out favorite "Old Guy"! 👍👍📀📀
Yo Steve! Thanks as always for your view and support!!
Maybe the toughest ''job'' with the Beatles : coming up with a great 15-second solo to complement a great song. Amazing, how he pulled it off and how so many of these songs owe a major part of their ''greatness'' to George's melodic creativity. In my book, he's #1 at pulling it off. I catch myself humming so many of his solos. Hats off to you George. The more I listen, the more I appreciate.
No one could compete with the talent of Lennon and McCartney.
that's the gist of the matter - - only enough room for two geniuses in a rock n'roll band....wait!!! ... with the honourable exception of Led Zep of course....
@@peterward9446 and the stones
@@nobeoddy1664 not sure Bill ever regarded himself as 'genius' material - & the vaulting genius apparently had an unfortunate 'accident' in a swimming pool...Mick Keef & Charlie - yeah fair call
And Pink Floyd…
@@myronlarimer1943 Oh Yeah!! .... my bad - I've missed a few who are top-echelon .... it's just that IMVHO - Plant was is & always will be the greatest vocalist of the Rock & Roll era - Bohham will always be regarded as 'gold-standard' greatest drummer of all time - Page is one of the great geniuses of the guitar & Jones is simply an all-round musical polymath; ... having said that - Britain has also produced brilliant bands that for one reason or another never made the 'Uber Big League' of Rock & Roll - Troggs & Kinks & Animals spring to mind....
George was a fine guitarist in his style, and I don’t care that he had issues with some songs. People think that Paul was not handy with a guitar because he played bass. Their fusion was one thing that made the Beatles a great group. George had a tough time with the “HELP!” lead too, but worked it out.
Beautiful and clean, I love listening to his work.
Thanks for the post!
If i remember correctly, George Harrison was still learning how to play the guitar when he joined the Beatles.
Yes, he did. His idol was Chet Atkins.
I thought he was asked to join because of his playing ability.
AWESOME, AS ALWAYS, MY FRIEND!!!!!!!!!!... & AS ALWAYS, EVERYONE'S GETTING THIS!!!!!!!!!!! By the way, I don't see a Vox AC30 back there... 🙀😸 YOU NEED ONE!!!!!!!!!!!